By taste or keeping it objective and talking about EY there is nothing like the EK43.
No doubt, less crema and mouthfeel, not a real easy workflow or procedure.
Consistency if the weight in the PF is the same is great.
The reward is clarity and sweetness all the way and not a mix out of over and under extraction.

The grinder / the output is like a monitoring device for roasters, I also have had a crucial experience which convinced me (blind testing vs Mythos one)

There is something like an "EK43 light" and it is not a big deal.
If you own a K30 you can change the burrs and use a more unimodal friendly set.

Left / top EK10 (ZrN coated) and right / bottom EK11 (K30 red speed coated)

Terranova wrote:By taste or keeping it objective and talking about EY there is nothing like the EK43.
No doubt, less crema and mouthfeel, not a real easy workflow or procedure.
Consistency if the weight in the PF is the same is great.
The reward is clarity and sweetness all the way and not a mix out of over and under extraction.

The grinder / the output is like a monitoring device for roasters, I also have had a crucial experience which convinced me (blind testing vs Mythos one)

There is something like an "EK43 light" and it is not a big deal.
If you own a K30 you can change the burrs and use a more unimodal friendly set.

Left / top EK10 (ZrN coated) and right / bottom EK11 (K30 red speed coated)

<image>

Which ones are supposed to be the more Unimodal burrs? Aren't the first ones what they used in the Pro m and at one point the Guatemala?

Yes, Guatemala lab and Kenia in some of the Prom's too.

What is your take on how those fair for espresso? I ask because I have a bulk grinder with these in it and wonder if I should give it a whirl for EK style espresso.


http://www.cw-usa.com/common/images/pro ... rr-set.jpg

With any luck the alignment is OK. I know adjustment might be a challenge but think I can get what I need done there.

It has no chute and if I WDT I basically get 0 retention....

OK sorry that's off topic! Wasn't sure if this needed a new thread but I had Franks attention..

RyanJE wrote: It has no chute and if I WDT I basically get 0 retention....

Just try it but it is RDT and not WDT

Here a little factory video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zL0QH--jMfE

Terranova wrote:Just try it but it is RDT and not WDT

Here a little factory video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zL0QH--jMfE

Meant RDT, doh!

macmini wrote:Hi there,

the latest news I have is (I live in Hamburg) from 2 very reliable sources is that the EK43 barista version will be on display @this years Internorga convention in march. And that it should be in its final version!
Keep fingers crossed
Cheers

Thanks for this update, macmini. I've been scouring the web (even reaching out to Mahlkönig directly) for any update on the EK43 Barista, and yours is literally the only concrete intel I've been able to find in months.

For that reason, would you or anyone else be willing to share anything more about your "two very reliable sources" and their insights? A year ago I read Christian Klatt say that Mahlkönig was field testing the "EK43 Barista" and remarked, "we are planning to release it on the market by the end of 2016." With Internorga scheduled March 17 - 21, it wouldn't be surprising to learn that Mahlkönig only ran a few months behind schedule, and that they are now releasing the machine. However, your sources saying that the final version of the EK43 Barista will be on display still leaves countless questions on when it will be available for purchase. As everyone on this thread surely knows, Mahlkönig also had an EK43 model on display at Host Milan in October 2015.

Assuming that your sources are correct about the final version of the EK43 Barista being on display late March 2017, then, realistically, the most optimistic and probably unrealistic timeline would be that it is available to consumers in April 2017. Did your source offer any indication on the delay between the final version being on display and being available for purchase? Are we looking at Q3 or Q4 2017? Or, perhaps something closer to the Internorga convention?

[I realize I'm stabbing in the dark here. I'm honestly trying to figure out whether to invest more money to repair an old and failing Baratza grinder as I wait for the EK43 Barista, or to tough it out a little while longer.]

You can also achieve unimodal grind in K30 with proM burrs, they look really similar to EK43 burrs and I have read on german coffee forum that the results are really really good.

Last night I sent a message to Mahlkönig USA's Facebook page about the EK43 Barista. They were responsive and very polite, but I received some less than encouraging news, which seems to affirm the pessimism several of you have expressed. Here's the abridged conversation.

===
Me: "Are you willing and able to share any updates on when the EK43 Barista might become available?"
Mahlkonig USA: "Sadly the EK Barista is exactly that "a prototype" this particular one will likely always live in that arena."
Me: "To be perfectly clear, you're saying that there is no plan for the EK43 Barista to come to market, ever? I simply want to be sure I'm clear on what you mean when you say that it will always be a prototype."
Mahlkonig USA: "At this time there are no concrete plans to bring this machine to market. It was/is pretty cool though."
===

I've worked in some retail settings (not coffee related) where regional reps honestly don't know what their company's R&D is doing on an international scale, so it's possible that this USA rep genuinely doesn't know what's going on in Hamburg. But, this still doesn't breed confidence. What's frustrating about this is that Christian Klatt said rather definitively, "we're planning to go to market with the EK43 Barista, *it's gonna come*, it's not 100% sure when, but we're still planning for 2016." Again, I don't mind them being a few months behind schedule, but promising that it's going to come and then outright bailing is upsetting.

That said, I hope macmini's intel on Internorga 2017 (which is only a week or so away now) is good, and that we're surprised with some news there.

Why would they waste time and money launching a niche product when they cannot keep up with current demand? I'd love to have one but seems like a unicorn.

Maybe they could just start selling shorter replacement legs and get halfway.